Pride and Prejudice* (*sort of)
★★★★☆ Delightful
Festival Theatre: Tue 22 – Sat 26 April 2025
Review by Rebecca Mahar
Isobel McArthur’s Pride & Prejudice* (*sort of) bursts out of the servants’ stairs and into the parlour with straight-talk and song, bringing irreverent Austenian charm to the Festival Theatre on the Edinburgh stop of its current UK & Ireland tour.
An adaptation of the Regency classic, this P&P balances faithfulness to the original story with poking fun at it, and how it’s been perceived and previously adapted. Along with, of course, a fantastic selection of well-known tunes to help speed the story along.
The cast of Isobel McArthur’s Pride & Prejudice* (*sort of). Pic: Mihaela Bodlovic.
Full of bright colours, superb comic timing, and dazzling moments of romantic sincerity amid the farce-like setting, it’s a show sure to delight fans of Austen and newcomers to the story alike.
Powered by an ensemble cast of five, the story is told by servants inhabiting the world of Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice. Each actress begins the show clad in corset, chemise, and yellow rubber gloves, establishing their place in the story in a charmingly imperfect opening number: while the upper-crust agonise over their love lives and fortunes, the servants see all, hear all, and have to carry on with their lives and jobs, regardless of who gets married to whom.
whip-smart
The cast are whip-smart and exceptionally quick and specific in their portrayal of multiple characters. With Naomi Preston Low taking the key role of Elizabeth Bennet, the company fling on and off different costumes and accessories, voices and instruments.
The cast of Isobel McArthur’s Pride & Prejudice* (*sort of). Pic: Mihaela Bodlovic.
Christine Steel, Rhianna McGreevy, Eleanor Kane and Isobel Donkin, who was taking on the roles usually played by Emma Rose Creaner on the night of Æs visit, inhabit all the characters of Pride & Prejudice as their servant personas act out the story.
Sometimes these transitions happen onstage in full view, others occur offstage: full costume quick-changes in what seems an impossibly short time, which is a credit to the ingenuity of Ana Inés Jabares-Pita’s design.
evocative
Similarly, Jabares-Pita’s simple set with its staircase and balcony over one room below transforms by the rapid shuffling of furniture to embody every location in the story. These transitions are aided by Colin Grenfell’s versatile lighting, which is delightful in its own right whether enlivening Elizabeth’s unfortunately bramble-filled walk, the Meryton Ball, or creating evocative nighttime looks complete with stars.
The cast of Isobel McArthur’s Pride & Prejudice* (*sort of). Pic: Mihaela Bodlovic.
The script is for the most part solid, although it does leave a couple of things slightly wanting. The opening of the show seems to promise a focus on the servants. While they do pop in and out as themselves in the context of the story and as its narrators, the principal focus is on the traditional story (if told in an untraditional way). This promised focus then feels unfulfilled, leaving a gap for the servants’ story still needing to be told.
Similarly, this interpretation of the main storyline begins to explore the idea that Charlotte Lucas is in love with (an oblivious) Lizzie, but she still ends up with the onerous Mr. Collins; an idea which fizzles out without any real resolution. McArthur may not have been out to change the story entirely with her adaptation, but adding this layer to poor Charlotte and leaving it this way makes her story even sadder than the original.
an ecstatic, original romp
Nevertheless, Pride & Prejudice* (*sort of) is an ecstatic, original romp through a well-trodden story. Judging by the gasps in the audience when some of the story’s twists were revealed, it does an excellent job communicating the story to those unfamiliar with it, as well as breathing new life into it for those who are.
Among all the adaptations of P&P that exist, this one ranks near the top, and is a must-see for anyone who daydreams of fine eyes and estates in Derbyshire while scrubbing the dishes.
Running time: Two hours and 20 minutes (including one interval).
Festival Theatre, 13-29 Nicolson St. EH8 9FT
Tue 22 – Sat 26 April 2025
Evenings: 7.30pm; Thu & Sat Mats: 2.30pm.
Tickets and details: Book here.
Access performances: Thurs 24 7.30pm show will be captioned; Sat 26 2:30pm show will be audio described, BSL interpreted, and have a touch tour before the show.
The cast of Isobel McArthur’s Pride & Prejudice* (*sort of). Pic: Mihaela Bodlovic.
ENDS
Naomi Preston Low, Christine Steel, Rhianna McGreevy, Eleanor Kane, Isobel Donkin, Emma Rose Creaner, Ana Inés Jabares-Pita, Pride and Prejudice* (*sort of), Festival Theatre, Review, Rebecca Mahar, Isobel McArthur, Colin Grenfell,
